


Heartache

by micha_alien



Category: Greta Van Fleet (Band)
Genre: Angst, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-29
Updated: 2019-10-29
Packaged: 2021-01-08 01:38:15
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,338
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21227663
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/micha_alien/pseuds/micha_alien
Summary: This one's kinda sad. Really sad, actually. Proceed with caution. No one dies, but there's heartache, as the title suggests.





	Heartache

**Author's Note:**

> sweetkiszkadreams.tumblr.com

You were excited for the evening, had booked a hotel room and planned ahead even for the entire weekend, but most importantly the show. Getting ready was always a struggle when you were nervous or excited for something, and you had to wipe and reapply your eyeliner twice, once smudging it and once accidentally drawing the wing way too big. Unfortunately, your best friend had to cancel going to the show with you, but she would be there the rest of the weekend to hang out in the city.

You’d never been to a show on your own, and you were a bit nervous, being out this late as a young woman was risky, but you’d taken precautions. You were gonna be early, way too early, because you wanted, no, needed to be first row, needed to hold on to the barricade to see everything, everyone on stage, properly. Hoping to be able to catch a spot right in front of Jake, you made your way to the venue hours before it even opened.

-

Jake was nervous, though mostly excited; always worried something would go wrong with the equipment. Soundcheck went well enough, the support band was great, his bandmates were buzzing with excitement, and he sat with them in the dressing room. Lounging on the run-down couch with his guitar in his lap, he went through some songs again, warming up his fingers. Josh prepared by drinking some tea with honey and going through some vocal exercises, Sam and Danny were just playing cards, supposedly didn’t need a warm-up.

The support band finally got called on stage and Jake tried to focus on something other than the noisy crowd out there, and he knew as soon as it was their own turn to play, he’d be over the nervousness. “I need a drink”, he said, set his guitar aside and sauntered over to the bar, pouring himself a shot and downing it, going unnoticed by the others who were deeply focused on other things. He grabbed a beer from the cooler and sank back down on the couch, then changed his mind and went to have a smoke outside.

-

You’d really managed to get the exact spot you’d wanted, stood next to some other girls vaguely your age, could see the entire stage from here, but most importantly all of Jake’s side. The support band didn’t exactly excite you, but you politely clapped after every song, smiling at the band member right in front of you and anxiously waiting until they’d leave and it was time for the band you’d come to see.

After a break, the crew setting up all the equipment, the lights went down again and the crowd was cheering, even though nobody was in sight yet. But there, only a minute later, the background music was turned off and you saw some bare feet on the left side and center of the stage, and those Chelsea boots you’d waited for directly in front of you, and you managed a cheerful “Woo!” before they finally started playing and the spotlight was turned to them.

-

The adrenaline was buzzing through Jake’s veins as he flawlessly performed song after song, even got to goof around a little bit in between, watched his twin brother almost slip and fall on the stage, stayed back in the dark during Danny’s drum solo; and completely lost his mind when he saw the most beautiful girl he’d ever seen, _maybe_, right in front of him.

She danced a little bit, but didn’t go too crazy, sang all the lyrics, looked at him with the sweetest smile, and her eyes teared up as she mouthed a genuine “thank you” at him when he tossed her his guitar pick with a wink halfway through the show. She wore something strapless, showed off her collarbone and her glowing skin, and he wanted to touch her hair and her pretty face, but there was no way he would be able to, ever. Being a Rockstar was fucking lonely sometimes.

-

You’d rarely ever been as happy as when you’d caught the little piece of plastic, meaningless to most, but so important to you; when Jake winked at you, you thought you might faint, but you kept your composure, only slightly teary-eyed. He kept playing, unbothered by anything, and you watched every movement of his fingers intently, looked up in awe when he raised the instrument to the back of his head and kept playing, and you had no eyes for anyone else in the room.

The show was over too soon, and a weird sadness gripped you when you exited the venue, Jake’s guitar pick buried safely in your bag. The cab ride all the way to the hotel was quiet, you paid the fare and made your way up to your room, had checked in before you’d gone to the venue to get in line. You took off your outfit of the day, removed your make-up and stepped into the shower, washing the sweat and dirt of the day away.

-

Jake was deep in thought the rest of the night, and while the other three guys were having drinks in Sam and Danny’s room, playing silly games, he went to his and Josh’s room to lay in bed and stare at the ceiling, knotting his brows together and trying to sleep, but he failed. Miserably, he failed, because he couldn’t stop thinking about the girl in the first row that night. He’d seen many pretty girls at his shows, talked to a lot of them, but there was never any time for connection, so he lost them, every time, without fail.

He thought about how if any girl was ever to come back to his hotel room, that’d be it, there wouldn’t be more than just a quick hook-up, because it would always be weird between him and his fans. It would be uncomfortable, being the famous one in a relationship doomed to stay one-sided and unfair. And it would be horrible for the girl, giving her hope and then crushing it without ever meaning to.

-

Freshly showered and wrapped in the comfortable blanket on the hotel bed, you texted your best friend, who’d been so bummed out that she couldn’t join you tonight. She freaked out when you told her about the guitar pick and Jake winking at you, so angry at her manager for changing her shifts last minute that she swore she would tear his throat out after the weekend. You laughed, then said goodnight and went to sleep.

At least you tried. You couldn’t stop thinking about Jake’s wink, the countless looks he’d thrown you all night, and the more you thought about it, the less certain you were that they had happened. Trying to remember when you’d first developed a crush on him, you had to go back quite some time, and you wondered if he ever hooked up with any fans. Certainly, there would be a lot of them for him to choose from.

-

Jake was still curled up on his side, awake, when Josh stumbled into the room, burping, bumping into the table and cursing, then falling down in his own bed and quickly falling asleep. The smell of liquor and the sound of his even breaths and snores made Jake feel sick; or maybe it was the mixture of that and the nagging feeling, the worry on his mind. He grabbed his cigarettes, put on a pair of sweatpants and left the room, finding the closest balcony to smoke on.

He watched the twinkling lights of the city, barely visible stars in the sky, light pollution preventing a better view. He smoked two cigarettes in a row, then just stood there, leant against the railing, thinking about his situation. He was doing what made him happy, was living his dream, and yet, there was something missing. Something that was hard to get now that so many people knew his face and his name.

-

Eventually, you drifted off into a dreamless sleep that only lasted a few hours, then you were wide awake again. You checked the time and decided to get dressed and have some breakfast in the city, alone as you waited for your best friend to arrive. It was too early, the sun hadn’t even made a full appearance yet, the cold air stung in your eyes as you walked down the sidewalk until you’d made it to the mall.

You found a place right in the center that offered breakfast, sat down in a corner and sipped on your coffee, slowly waking up and feeling some warmth creep into your limbs. After you’d finished your food, there was still over an hour to kill, so you grabbed your bag and peeked into some stores, found a bookstore and bought a little Sudoku booklet that would certainly help pass the time. A bench in the middle of the walkway served as your accomodation until you’d have to leave for the train station to pick up your friend.

-

Jacob didn’t get much sleep, woke up much too early to justify waking the others, decided he needed a shower after staying in the sweat and the shirt of last night’s show, so he scrubbed it away, watched it flow down the drain before getting dressed in something comfortable, topping it off with a pair of sunglasses in hopes of not getting recognized as much.

The mall was just around the corner, he craved a sandwich, any sandwich, tried to find the best option on two levels and settled on Subway in the end. He took a seat tucked away in the corner, watched the other customers through his shades, tried to eavesdrop on some conversations but didn’t get anything pertaining to his interests. He finished his lonely breakfast, remembered he needed a new phone and found an electronics store on the lower level. Something in the display window caught his eye, a reflection of someone sitting on the bench in the middle of the walkway.

-

You were staring down at the Sudoku you were trying to solve, about the fifth in a row, looked up for a split second and in your peripheral, you saw him, standing in front of a big chain store, seemingly checking out the electronics in the window. You recognized him immediately, the sunglasses on his face couldn’t fool you, you could point him out in any crowd of people, however big. Jake’s hair was a bit messy, but his outfit and his ass looked exactly like you thought they would in this light.

You didn’t know if you should approach him, wished your friend was here with you, but you nervously, hesitantly decided better now than to miss the opportunity and nobody ever believing you. You cleared your throat, dropped the Sudoku booklet in your bag and clutched it as you walked up to him, surprised when he turned around before you were too close, and took off his sunglasses, pocketing them in his shirt with a grin.

You smiled at him, knew immediately that he recognized you, and you felt like you were made of jelly, awkwardly shifting from one foot to the other. “Heyyy”, you managed to squeak, then cleared your throat. “Hey”, he replied, still grinning, “I saw you at the show last night. Did you catch the pick?” “Y-yeah”, you said, nodding and smiling uncontrollably. He was silent for a moment, you looked over your shoulder, nervous as never before. “Where are the others?”, you asked, and immediately could have yelled at yourself for it. “Still asleep”, he replied. “I really enjoyed the show last night, you were incredible”, you said, and he smiled even wider than before. “Thank you so much”, he said, and you caught him glancing down at your lips. “What’s your name?”, he asked, and you introduced yourself.

“Can I, I mean if that’s okay, can I get a selfie with you?”, you asked, and he nodded, of course. Taking a step forward and fishing your phone out of your bag, you stood next to him and opened the front camera, swiping away the three unread messages from your friend. The shutter clicked, once, twice, then you lowered the phone and stepped back. “Ahh, I’m so nervous”, you giggled, and he winked at you again, this time with both eyes. “No need to be, I’m just a human being.”, Jake said, still just standing there, smiling.

“Can I get a hug too?”, you asked, and he nodded once before pulling you into an embrace, firm and warm, giving your back a quick rub, then letting go again, and you wished he hadn’t. Your phone buzzed again, and you excused yourself to check, saw that your friend was waiting for you at the station. “I’m sorry, I gotta go, it was lovely to meet you! Keep it up, I love you guys!”, you said, getting ready to rush outside, and he gave you another smile. “Alright, lovely to meet you too, glad you had a good time last night!” And with that, you were gone.

-

You found your best friend perched on the back rest of a bench outside the station, smiling at you as you walked up to her with a big grin and a flushed face. “Guess what”, you said, holding up your phone that displayed your selfie with Jake. “What- Oh, no way!”, your friend shrieked, snatching your phone and taking a closer look. “You lucky bitch! What did he say?”

-

Jake wandered around the mall for a while longer after he’d purchased his new phone, found a book he’d been meaning to read, then walked back to the hotel to find three hungover bandmates in their beds. Instead of forcing them to grab breakfast, he just buried himself under the covers again, opening the book and beginning to read with a deep sigh. He swallowed his emotions down, bottled them up for now. They would pass soon. They always did.


End file.
